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 A California woman has accused the popular chain in a lawsuit of
false advertising after it trumpeted on April 27 that it was the
first national restaurant company to use only ingredients that are
free of controversial genetically modified organisms, or GMOs.
In her lawsuit filed Friday in federal court in San Francisco, the
plaintiff Colleen Gallagher also alleged that Chipotle violated the
Federal Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act because its food labeling is
false and misleading, and deceived diners into paying more for their
food.
"As Chipotle told consumers it was 'G-M-Over it,' the opposite was
true," the Piedmont, California resident said. "In fact, Chipotle's
menu as never been at any time free of GMOs."
Chipotle spokesman Chris Arnold declined to discuss the allegations,
but said "we do plan to contest this."
Many U.S. diners have in surveys expressed a willingness to pay a
premium price for food they perceive to be less processed and more
natural or organic, and retail data back that up.
Chipotle's website carries disclaimers about the GMO content in its
food.
Those disclaimers say that "most animal feed in the U.S. is
genetically modified, which means that the meat and dairy served at
Chipotle are likely to come from animals given at least some GMO
feed." They add that "many of the beverages sold in our restaurants
contain genetically modified ingredients."
Gallagher contended that most Chipotle diners are unlikely to see
these disclaimers, and will rely instead on the company’s
advertising.
Her lawsuit seeks class action status and unspecified damages.
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A woman named Colleen Gallagher, represented by the same law firm,
is also a plaintiff in a 2014 lawsuit in the same court alleging
that Bayer AG's claims about the health benefits of its One A Day
multivitamins misled consumers. On Aug. 18, U.S. District Judge
William Orrick denied Bayer’s motion to dismiss that lawsuit.
Lawyers for Gallagher did not immediately respond on Monday to calls
and emails seeking comment.
The case is Gallagher v Chipotle Mexican Grill Inc, U.S. District
Court, Northern District of California, No. 15-03952.
(Reporting by Lisa Baertlein in Los Angeles and Jonathan Stempel in
New York; Editing by David Gregorio)
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